Tigers sputter against Badgers

Auburn running back Kenny Irons (23) is brought down by Wisconsin’s Levonne Rowan (21) and LaMarr Watkins during the second half of the Capital One Bowl in Orlando, Fla., on Monday.
The Associated Press

By John Zenor The Associated Press

Published: Tuesday, January 3, 2006 at 3:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Monday, January 2, 2006 at 11:00 p.m.

ORLANDO, Fla. | No. 7 Auburn’s second play ended with an interception. The fifth was a fumble.

Just like that, the Tigers went from one of the SEC’s hottest teams to a postseason flop with Monday’s 24-10 loss to No. 21 Wisconsin in the Capital One Bowl.

“We weren’t ready to play," Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville said.

And it showed. The league’s top offense managed just 236 yards, the defense allowed 548 and the wrong team looked like a 101/2-point favorite.

Auburn (9-3) hardly looked like the same team that finished the regular season with wins over Georgia and Alabama. The Tigers bumbled an opportunity to win 10 games a season after going 13-0 and losing four players to the first round of the NFL draft.

“It’s a tough game to end on, especially with the great season we’ve had," said quarterback Brandon Cox said. “If we can just kind of put that one aside and look back at the season that we did have, I think a lot of people were impressed."

That’s a big “if."

Cox’s first pass was underthrown downfield, and Levonne Rowan picked it off.

“It was a bad throw. I had a lot of bad throws," said Cox, who was 15-of-33 for 137 yards.

Kenny Irons lost a fumble at the end of his third consecutive run on the second possession.

The offense never really managed to get much going after that, either, and the Tigers trailed 17-0 at halftime.

Irons ran 22 times for 88 yards, and the receivers didn’t help much by dropping some passes.

“They have a pretty good defense," said receiver Courtney Taylor, who did catch a touchdown pass. “I’m not going to take anything from those guys, but we just shot ourselves in the foot. You can’t play just one half of football. Everything that can possibly go wrong went wrong in that first half, and you can’t beat a team like that."

“We knew coming in here that we were going to have to play our tails off and play probably better than what we’ve played," Tuberville said. “That’s the best offense we’ve seen.

“They played better and coached better than we did."

The Tigers rallied in the second half, with John Vaughn’s 19-yard field goal early in the third quarter. Then, Cox hit Taylor in the end zone for a 9-yard touchdown on fourth-and-goal to make it 17-10 two plays into the fourth.

But once again, the defense had no answer for Calhoun, who raced 33 yards for a touchdown five plays later.

“When they needed points and to move the football, they were able to do it," Tuberville said.

The Tigers’ problems weren’t limited to the stat sheet. Senior offensive tackle Troy Reddick was ejected from the game after an altercation with a Wisconsin player in the first half.

It might have been the final game at Auburn for junior defensive starters David Irons and Stanley McClover. Both said they would head home to their families before making decisions on whether to enter the NFL draft.

<p>ORLANDO, Fla. | No. 7 Auburn’s second play ended with an interception. The fifth was a fumble.</p><!-- Nothing to do. The paragraph has already been output --><p>Just like that, the Tigers went from one of the SEC’s hottest teams to a postseason flop with Monday’s 24-10 loss to No. 21 Wisconsin in the Capital One Bowl.</p><p>We weren’t ready to play," Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville said.</p><p>And it showed. The league’s top offense managed just 236 yards, the defense allowed 548 and the wrong team looked like a 101/2-point favorite.</p><p>Auburn (9-3) hardly looked like the same team that finished the regular season with wins over Georgia and Alabama. The Tigers bumbled an opportunity to win 10 games a season after going 13-0 and losing four players to the first round of the NFL draft.</p><p>It’s a tough game to end on, especially with the great season we’ve had," said quarterback Brandon Cox said. If we can just kind of put that one aside and look back at the season that we did have, I think a lot of people were impressed."</p><p>That’s a big if."</p><p>Cox’s first pass was underthrown downfield, and Levonne Rowan picked it off.</p><p>It was a bad throw. I had a lot of bad throws," said Cox, who was 15-of-33 for 137 yards.</p><p>Kenny Irons lost a fumble at the end of his third consecutive run on the second possession.</p><p>The offense never really managed to get much going after that, either, and the Tigers trailed 17-0 at halftime.</p><p>Irons ran 22 times for 88 yards, and the receivers didn’t help much by dropping some passes.</p><p>They have a pretty good defense," said receiver Courtney Taylor, who did catch a touchdown pass. I’m not going to take anything from those guys, but we just shot ourselves in the foot. You can’t play just one half of football. Everything that can possibly go wrong went wrong in that first half, and you can’t beat a team like that."</p><p>The Tigers had a three-year bowl winning streak snapped. Besides the offensive woes, they had no answer for Wisconsin quarterback John Stocco (301 yards passing), tailback Brian Calhoun (213 yards rushing) or receiver Brandon Williams (173 yards receiving).</p><p>We knew coming in here that we were going to have to play our tails off and play probably better than what we’ve played," Tuberville said. That’s the best offense we’ve seen.</p><p>They played better and coached better than we did."</p><p>The Tigers rallied in the second half, with John Vaughn’s 19-yard field goal early in the third quarter. Then, Cox hit Taylor in the end zone for a 9-yard touchdown on fourth-and-goal to make it 17-10 two plays into the fourth.</p><p>But once again, the defense had no answer for Calhoun, who raced 33 yards for a touchdown five plays later.</p><p>When they needed points and to move the football, they were able to do it," Tuberville said.</p><p>The Tigers’ problems weren’t limited to the stat sheet. Senior offensive tackle Troy Reddick was ejected from the game after an altercation with a Wisconsin player in the first half.</p><p>It might have been the final game at Auburn for junior defensive starters David Irons and Stanley McClover. Both said they would head home to their families before making decisions on whether to enter the NFL draft.</p>